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‘Ramayana is itihasa’

Using astronomical and geological data, noted writer and former professor of Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Ka. Va. Na. Sarma has said the Ramayana is an itihasa , much more than history, having the six characteristics defined by Chanakya.

Rama lived in the same Vaivaswata manwantara as the present generation and belonged to 24th mahayuga and going by the ice age that ended in 8000 BC some computerised calculations put his year of birth as 5,114, he said. He considered 4,366 BC and 3,618 BC also as possibilities and veered around to the view that the latter was the year of Rama’s birth.

Rama was a modern man belonging to homo sapiens adept at using bow and arrows, Mr. Sarma said. The journey of Rama, the Ramayana, could be mapped right from his journey with Viswamitra to Midhila where he married Sita.

There were versions that Parnasala, where Rama lived with Sita during his banishment, was in Maharashtra and Bhadrachalam, Prof. Sarma said adding that those in Maharashtra tended to agree with his view that it was in Bhadrachalam.

Rama Sethu was constructed to Lanka with pumice stones and it might not be one continuous bridge and the description of crossing the ocean in the Ramayana supported it, he said basing the narration on his book Rama Kanda.

The speech in Telugu was peppered with many an insightful observation on giving of boons (varams), the succession to the throne of Ayodhya by Rama and the role of vanaras, among other things.

Prof. Sarma said Ravana was 70 years of age when he took Sita away to Lanka. He would not have done so but for the provocation of Surpanakha, spurned by Rama.

“My endeavour was to counter doubts over the existence of Rama just as Einstein said of Gandhi that future generations will scarce believe that such one as this …. walked upon earth,” Prof. Sarma said, adding that he read the Ramayana with an open mind.

Former Principal and Director of MSRIT, Bangalore, Kundurti Rajanikanth in his introduction laid the platform for the talk stating Prof. Sarma’s hypothesis was to prove that there was no strong evidence that the Ramayana was not itihasa conforming to logic and without bias.

Rasajna Vedika founder-president G. Raghu Rama Rao described Prof. Sarma as an engineer, professor, scientist, litterateur and intellectual. A prolific writer, his literary journey began at the age of 14 when he had written his first story.